Ever since the invention of the CRT-type TV sets (or particularly flat panel displays of today), the prices thereof are rapidly going down as the manufacture technology advances and is matured. Therefore, little profit can be gained from selling the display device. The manufacturers are making some alteration on its external appearance in order to attract the attention of the consumers so as to increase the sale.
A conventional display device, such as a TV set, is generally provided with a plurality sets of terminal ports at its rear cover for establishing electrical communication with its peripheral devices, such as a tape recording-and-reproducing instrument or a DVD player or a sound amplifier. The more the peripheral devices are connected to the display device, the better the entertainment effect the user can enjoy. However, one problem arises when the terminal ports are mounted on the rear cover of the display. Attachment or detachment of the terminal ports to the peripheral devices is somewhat inconvenient.
In one conventional display device, the terminal ports are provided at a lower portion of the front frame so that attachment and detachment of the peripheral device can be conducted with ease. However, exposure of the terminal ports advertently affects the aesthetic appearance of the display.
Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, a conventional display device (such as a plasma TV set) includes a front frame 6, a rear cover 8 and a lateral side input-and-output module 4 sandwiched between the front frame 6 and the rear cover 8 to form a casing 2 that has a lateral side extending between the front frame 6 and the rear cover 8. The lateral side I/O module 4 generally includes a side connector 12 fixed to the front frame 6 and formed with a plurality of port-retentive sleeves 1202 defining openings, and a terminal substrate 14 having a plurality of parallelly arranged terminal-receiving ports 10. A plurality of fastener screws 18b extend through the holes 18a on the terminal substrate 14, and are fastened threadedly to the screw holes 18c in the inner surface of the rear cover 8 in such a manner that the ports 10 extend into the sleeves 1202 so as to expose the ports 10 to the exterior of the casing 2. The lateral side I/O module 4 further includes an electrical connector 16 connected to the ports 10 via a signal cable 20.
During assembly of the aforesaid conventional display device, the terminal substrate 14 is first of all mounted on the inner side surface of the rear cover 8. In order to establish electrical communication between the inner terminals in the casing 2 and the connector 16 of the terminal substrate 14, the inner terminals (not shown) are required to be projected outwardly from the front frame 6 so as to couple with the connector 16 once the rear cover 8 is brought toward the front frame 6. Thus the assembler needs to hold the front frame 6 and the rear cover 8 temporarily in order to form gap therebetween to permit coupling of the terminals with the connector 16 prior to coupling the front frame 6 and the rear cover 8, thereby inconveniencing the assembler.
The object of the present invention is to provide a lateral side input-and-output module used in a display device so as to eliminate the problems encountered during assembly of the conventional display device and reduce the electromagnetic interference around the display device.